CISI IntegrityMatters: Pass Mark, Format and What to Expect
IntegrityMatters is the compulsory ethics test you must pass before the Capital Markets Programme. The pass mark is 19 out of 24. Here is how it works and how to approach it.
What is the pass mark for CISI IntegrityMatters?
You need 19 out of 24 to pass IntegrityMatters, which is just under 80%. It is built from six case studies worth up to four marks each, and it is adaptive, so the option you choose in each scenario decides the next question you see. The short workshop and the test together usually take between 45 minutes and an hour.
- Pass mark
- 19 out of 24, just under 80%
- Format
- Six case studies, up to four marks each, with adaptive branching
- How long it takes
- 45 minutes to an hour, including the workshop
- Where you take it
- Online, through your MyCISI portal
- Required before
- The Capital Markets Programme papers, in the UK and several other regions
- Also required for
- New ACSI, MCSI and Affiliate members, before joining or within their first three months
- Your result
- An on-screen certificate you can save or print. There is no printed result
- What it tests
- Judgement, not memory. There is no syllabus to revise
If you are booking a CISI Capital Markets Programme exam, IntegrityMatters is the step that catches people out. It is a compulsory online ethics test you must clear before you can sit the Programme papers, and the pass mark is 19 out of 24. The good news is that it is short and tests judgement rather than technical recall. Here is exactly how it works and how to approach it.
What is IntegrityMatters?
IntegrityMatters is an online ethics and integrity test built by the CISI and taken through your MyCISI portal. It is not a traditional exam with a syllabus to revise. Instead it presents realistic workplace dilemmas and asks you to choose the most professional course of action. It comes as a short workshop followed by the test itself, and CISI says the two together should take 30 to 50 minutes.
The pass mark and format
You need 19 out of 24 to pass, which is just under 80%. The test is built from six case studies, each worth up to four marks. The clever part is that it is adaptive: in each scenario you choose one course of action from three, and the option you pick decides the next question you are shown. Two people can therefore take slightly different paths through the same case. Because it is entirely online there is no printed result; you get a certificate on screen showing your outcome, which you can save or print.
Test yourself on Global Fin. Compliance
4 questions written to the current syllabus, in the format of the real paper. Pick an answer and the explanation appears. Nothing to sign up for.
According to IOSCO, the three objectives that self-regulatory organisations (SROs) share with statutory regulation are:
Not quite. The answer is C.
IOSCO's Objectives and Principles of Securities Regulation state that self-regulation shares the same broad objectives as government regulation: preserving market integrity, preserving financial integrity by reducing systemic risk, and protecting investors. Protecting investors is the third of those objectives, not providing consumer redress, which is a domestic compensation arrangement. Maximising trading volumes and exchange revenues is a commercial aim rather than a regulatory objective, and standardising trading hours and exchange holidays is an operational matter for market operators.
Where a board lacks the time to assess compliance risk personally each year, the BCBS principles allow it to delegate the task to:
Not quite. The answer is A.
The BCBS principles allow the board to delegate oversight tasks to an appropriate board-level committee, such as an audit committee, while the board itself retains responsibility. A junior analyst sits outside the board and cannot discharge a board responsibility, the regulator supervises the firm from outside and cannot take over its internal oversight, and the external auditors report on the financial statements rather than manage compliance risk.
An investor changes their registered bank details shortly before redeeming a large holding, later found to be part of a wider pattern of behaviour. This is most likely evidence of the money laundering stage of:
Not quite. The answer is D.
Rapidly changing account details ahead of a large redemption is a classic layering behaviour, designed to make it harder for authorities to trace the link between the original deposit and its eventual recipient. Placement concerns the initial entry of cash, integration concerns the final legitimising of funds, and 'reporting' is not a money laundering stage.
A CISI member believes they are being asked to act against the Code of Conduct's Principles. Having discussed it with their line manager without resolution, the next step the Code sets out is to:
Not quite. The answer is C.
The CISI's recommended escalation route runs from the line manager to the internal compliance department, then to the non-executive directors or audit committee, and only then to the CISI itself once internal avenues are exhausted. Resigning immediately, informing the police and contacting the CISI at this stage all skip the internal steps the Code expects members to try first.
That is 4 of more than 10,800 questions in the PasskeyPrep bank. Chapter 1 of every exam is free, with the study notes and flashcards that go with it, and every answer is marked and explained the way these were.
Who has to take it?
Two groups need IntegrityMatters. First, Capital Markets Programme candidates in the UK, Ireland, Europe and North America must pass it before sitting a Programme exam. Second, new CISI members joining as ACSI, MCSI or Affiliate must pass it either before joining or within their first three months. If either applies to you, make it the first thing you do, not the last.
Is it hard, and how should you approach it?
It is not hard in the way a technical paper is hard, because there is nothing to memorise. What it tests is judgement: whether you can spot the professional, compliant response when a scenario is designed to tempt you towards a shortcut. Read each dilemma carefully, resist the answer that is fastest or most commercially convenient, and choose the option a regulator would want to see. Do not overthink it or try to game the branching. The avoidable mistakes are rushing a dilemma or talking yourself out of the clearly professional response.
Where this fits with your CISI prep
IntegrityMatters clears the ethics gate. The Capital Markets Programme exams themselves are the technical challenge, and that is what PasskeyPrep is built for. Once IntegrityMatters is done, start on the papers: our Capital Markets Programme guide explains the two exams you actually sit, you can try free UK Financial Regulation practice questions, and PasskeyPrep pricing shows what full practice and mock access includes. PasskeyPrep is an independent study tool and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or accredited by the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment.
Frequently asked questions
What is the pass mark for CISI IntegrityMatters?
You need 19 out of 24 to pass IntegrityMatters, which is just under 80%. It is built from six case studies worth up to four marks each.
Is IntegrityMatters an exam?
Not in the usual sense. It is an online ethics test taken through the MyCISI portal, made up of a short workshop and a set of workplace scenarios. There is no syllabus to memorise; it tests your judgement rather than technical knowledge.
Which CISI exams require IntegrityMatters?
Capital Markets Programme candidates in the UK, Ireland, Europe and North America must pass IntegrityMatters before sitting a Programme exam. New CISI members also have to pass it before joining or within their first three months.
How long does IntegrityMatters take?
CISI says the workshop and test together should take 30 to 50 minutes, so it can normally be completed in one sitting.